Fishing poles, swimming trunks and baseball gloves. All of these things are synonymous with summer in the parks around Russellville.

However, as summer weather rolls in, it brings with it a tide that is much less pleasant — litter.

Russellville Parks and Recreation Department workers spend an average of 45 minutes to an hour every day picking up litter in and around Russellville city parks. And the rate of litter is steadily rising.

Mack Hollis, Parks and Recreation director, said the amount of litter they find each day gets progressively worse.

“Litter has gotten a lot worse,” Hollis said. “There just doesn’t seem to be a way to slow it down at this point. We are doing all that we can to keep the parks clean.”

Hollis said that while people are to blame for the litter in the parks and around the city, the design of the manufactured items being littered is just as much at fault.

“A while back in time, when we’d buy drinks, it was a bottle with a top,” Hollis said. “That equates to just two pieces of litter to pick up. Now, it’s in several different parts. Take for example a juice box. There’s the box, the wrapper, a straw, and the straw wrapper. That’s four different items. Multiply that by more sets just like it, and that adds up really fast.”

Russellville has 14 parks for residents to enjoy and make use of. Littering has become a problem at all of them.

Russellville Mayor Bill Eaton said it will take a lot more than just a set of rules to slow the rate of littering in the city.

“One of the things that has plagued me as mayor and my responsibility of city functions is the question of how to change the attitudes of people,” Eaton said.

“It’s about getting them to see the little things that can make a difference in the appearance and presence of our city, county and state, relative to pride minus the arrogance. The attitude needs to change to a spirit of servant-hood, to be responsible and respectful of those around you.”

Eaton said although there is a need to change the attitudes of people regarding littering, there is a major block in the path.

“This is a matter of self-discipline,” Eaton said. “We have a generation that seems to lack self-discipline, with a lack of respect to fellow men, and a lack of self-respect. And that reflects on a person’s character.”

Eaton added there is no specific age group on which to place all of the blame.

“It’s not just children to blame for the littering,” he said. “We often say that it is the children or that the parents didn’t train their kids. But when a large majority of litter consists of whiskey bottles and beer cans, it’s fair to presume that these aren’t kids.”

Eaton stated litter is “lousy and inappropriate” and that “littering will be firmly dealt with.”

Eaton encouraged residents to take a stand against littering.

“If you’re driving on the road and see someone throw trash out of their window, get the vehicle’s license number and call the number on the highway litter signs,” Mayor Eaton said.

If the Mayor was sincere about cracking down on litter he would require performance requirements in Waste Management's contract that penalizes them severely for littering. I watched one of their trucks picking up trash in my neighborhood a few weeks ago and while they were dumping the trash can into the truck receptacle paper was flying all over the nearby yards. What did the WM employees do? NOTHING as they went on about their business of moving to the next pickup disregarding the fact that they just spewed volumes of litter. I could not believe what I saw an immediately called their office to complain. The Mayor should hold these service companies to a higher level of standard but then again he gave into Walmart (who just was fined for dumping chemical supplies into several cities trash receptacles) so I would not hold my breath he will implement any changes.

Thank you Mr Mayor. It is truly a gargantuan task to raise the self respect even more the self discipline of a few, much less a town or region. We all have the duty to train our children well, mainly so there can be a better result in the future for all of us. This means better even for those who do little at all to help.